Bruce Willis’ Good Day to Die Hard’  a good day for at least one action star

Tuesday

Feb 19, 2013 at 6:00 AM

Liz Smith

‘Nothing succeeds like excess,” Hollywood always murmurs to itself.

But there were perils galore in the recently mounted comeback films of Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The public just didn’t seem to care. And even Tom Cruise’s “Jack Reacher” came and went with only middling results.

So the experts said maybe middle-aged action stars are on the way out.

Thus, I am gloriously thrilled that my pal Bruce Willis knocked box office socks off with his fifth “Die Hard” film, “A Good Day to Die Hard.” Costing $90 million to make, it scored $25 million on its first weekend. I’m betting the final tally will be spectacular.

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When you see photographs of Andrew Cuomo, he is often shown with a fierce, aggressive look on his face. In person, he is genial and has a nice relaxed sense of humor. The other night, when I sat one table away from him at the Bowery Mission dinner dance, he seemed to be enjoying himself hugely. If you pay any attention to the tabloids, he is forever shown on the verge of a meltdown.

The governor of New York was with his astoundingly attractive one and only, the famous Sandra Lee, who was honoree of the night for the Mission’s 14th annual valentine celebration at the Plaza Ballroom. Ms. Lee, Emmy winner and food famous, is quite something and we quickly understood why they’d chosen to honor her: She never leaves a loaf of bread uncut and unbuttered when it comes to the helpless and hungry.

The Mission has been aiding New Yorkers for 133 years and is busy now outfitting two townhouses in Harlem for further recovery programs. The Mission on the Bowery, with its famous red door, was flooded during Hurricane Sandy, but the night before the storm hit, they had organized for the needs of the aftermath. The morning after the storm, they served hundreds of meals to the displaced and even provided kosher food for those who needed it.

Although the hostess of the Mission’s big night, Veronica Kelly, was hospitalized for dehydration, her famous husband (and hero in my book) Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, ably took her place. We were quite a table: Ray, the Guv, Sandra, Liz, Arianna Huffington, the Guv’s sister-in-law Cristina, Scott Leurquin of the Landmarks Conservancy, Bowery head Ed Morgan and actress Judith Light. A ravishingly scarlet clad Maria Bartiromo emceed with plenty of glamour. The Bowery Mission raised almost $800,000 on this night.